SWOSU upsets No. 1 Golden SunsWEATHERFORD, Okla. — Darcie Dick scored 26 points to lead the Southwestern Oklahoma State Bulldogs to an 85-82 upset win over the nationally top-ranked Arkansas Tech Golden Suns at Rankin Williams Fieldhouse on Thursday night. Dick was 6-of-10 from 3-point range. The Iowa State transfer also grabbed six rebounds, made six steals and dished out six assists as Southwestern Oklahoma State (7-5 overall, 2-1 Great American Conference) handed the Go...

Johnson to join McGee at UABFAYETTEVILLE — Arkansas coach Bobby Petrino hoped the changes on his staff had ended last month, when he had to replace three coaches before the Cotton Bowl. But Petrino will have to fill one more vacancy this offseason — and find two new graduate assistants. Linebackers coach Reggie Johnson, offensive graduate assistant Richard Owens and defensive graduate assistant Brandon Sharp have left Arkansas to work at Alabama-Birmingham under coach Ga...

Free throws lift Wonder Boys to 78-72 road winWEATHERFORD, Okla. — The free throw line has not always been kind to Arkansas Tech’s men this season. It was very good to the Wonder Boys on Thursday night. Johnie Davis tied school records for free throws made (22) and free throws attempted (23) in a game as Arkansas Tech notched a 78-72 Great American Conference win over the Southwestern Oklahoma State Bulldogs at Rankin Williams Fieldhouse. Davis finished with a career-high 35 points. Jared...

Tyler Wilson returning for senior seasonFAYETTEVILLE — Arkansas quarterback Tyler Wilson announced he will return for his senior season with the Razorbacks. Wilson said in a statement Friday he was excited about the Razorbacks' prospects for next year and planned to finish his degree. Wilson earned first-team All-Southeastern Conference honors this season, his first as the starting quarterback after replacing Ryan Mallett. He threw for 3,638 yards and 24 touchdowns, leading the No. ...

NCAA president supports 4-team football playoffINDIANAPOLIS (AP) — NCAA President Mark Emmert would support a four-team playoff in college football — as long as the field doesn’t grow. After giving his annual state of the association speech Thursday in Indianapolis, Emmert acknowledged he would back a small playoff if that’s what Bowl Championship Series officials decide to adopt. “The notion of having a Final Four approach is probably a sound one,” Emmert said when asked what he heard com...

Headed West: Arkansas Tech basketball teams travel to Sooner StateArkansas Tech University will try to do something twice tonight that hasn’t been done this basketball season — defeat Southwestern Oklahoma State on its home floor at Rankin Williams Fieldhouse in Weatherford. The Great American Conference doubleheader begins at 5:30 p.m. with a women’s match-up between the nationally top-ranked Golden Suns (9-0, 1-0 GAC) and the Southwestern Oklahoma State Bulldogs (6-5, 1-1). Game two will pit the Wonder Boy...

Mississippi beats Arkansas 71-63OXFORD, Miss. (AP) — Murphy Holloway is way too short for a power forward in the Southeastern Conference, doesn’t shoot the ball particularly well from outside and has no signature offensive moves in the paint. Yet no one is more important to Mississippi’s basketball team. Holloway scored 19 points and grabbed 14 rebounds in his first game back from a sprained ankle and Mississippi beat Arkansas 71-63 on Wednesday night. Ole Miss (11-5, 1-1 So...

Arkansas basketball is hitting the roadFAYETTEVILLE — Arkansas has been unbeatable in Bud Walton Arena so far this season, improving to 12-0 after its impressive win against Mississippi State. But what happens when Arkansas ventures away from comfortable surroundings? The Razorbacks are 0-3 with losses to Houston, Connecticut and Oklahoma. It’s a trend the Razorbacks were well aware of earlier this week, when they prepared for their next road trip. Arkansas (12-3, 1-0 in Southeaste...

Arkansas Tech is still numero unoArkansas Tech University is ranked No. 1 in the USA Today/ESPN NCAA Division II women’s basketball top 25 poll for a second consecutive week. The latest rankings were released by the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association on Tuesday. The Golden Suns (9-0) maintained the top spot in the national rankings by defeating the University of Arkansas at Monticello Cotton Blossoms 76-68 on Thursday, Jan. 5. Including preseason polls, Arkansas Tech has ...

Razorback's Davis to return next seasonFAYETTEVILLE (AP) — Knile Davis isn't quite finished at Arkansas. The Razorbacks' running back announced Tuesday that he will return to school next season, deciding against entering the NFL draft after missing every game last year as he recovered from a fractured left ankle. The junior led all Southeastern Conference running backs with 1,322 yards rushing as a sophomore last season, but he went down Aug. 11 when a defensive lineman fell on his...

Persistence pays off for NoblesFAYETTEVILLE — Arkansas guard Julysses Nobles didn’t get frustrated. He didn’t pout. He didn’t lose control. The junior struggled on the offensive end over an eight-game stretch the past month, shooting an awful 16.7 percent from the field. But instead of throwing his hands in the air, he concentrated on finding other ways to help as he waded through a frustrating slump. “You’ve got to do something else to help your team,” Nobles said. “Defens...

Tide tops Tigers for titleNEW ORLEANS (AP) — Jeremy Shelley kicked five field goals and Trent Richardson broke a 34-yard touchdown run late in the fourth quarter as No. 2 Alabama beat No. 1 LSU 21-0 on Monday night — the first shutout in BCS title game history. Richardson swept around left end and raced down the sideline to the end zone with 4:36 left for the first touchdown between the Southeastern Conference rivals in more than 115 minutes of play and one overtime pe...

Arkansas tops Kansas State, 29-16ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Joe Adams had his fourth punt return for a touchdown this season and No. 7 Arkansas matched a school record with its 11th victory, beating No. 11 Kansas State 29-16 in the Cotton Bowl on Friday night. All-SEC quarterback Tyler Wilson threw two touchdown passes, including a 9-yarder to Kobi Hamilton with 4 minutes left in the third quarter after Kansas State (10-3) scored 16 consecutive points. Adams’ 51-yard return earl...

Hogs hope to continue streak into SEC playFAYETTEVILLE — Arkansas coach Mike Anderson’s team has gained plenty of confidence lately, leaning on a lengthy home stand to rattle off six straight nonconference wins. Southeastern Conference play begins tonight, though, when No. 15 Mississippi State comes to Bud Walton Arena. So Anderson and the Razorbacks know every bit of good will built up will be put to the test. “They are ranked. They are battle-tested, have played some very good teams...

Suns survive scare against BlossomsNo. 1 Arkansas Tech had not been tested this season before its Great American Conference opener on Thursday night. Arkansas-Monticello changed that, but the Golden Suns proved they can bounce back from adversity. Arkansas Tech (9-0, 1-0) used an 11-2 run midway through the second half to take the lead for good in a 76-68 victory over the UAM Cotton Blossoms at Tucker Coliseum in Russellville. The Golden Suns extended the longest home winning s...

Farmer leads Boll Weevils
past Wonder Boys 78-69L.A. Farmer scored 28 points to lead the Arkansas-Monticello Boll Weevils to a 78-69 Great American Conference men’s basketball victory over the Arkansas Tech Wonder Boys at Tucker Coliseum in Russellville on Thursday night. The Boll Weevils (11-2 overall, 1-0 GAC) went on a 21-2 run midway through the first half to claim a 26-11 lead with 7:53 left before the intermission. Arkansas Tech (8-3, 0-1) scored the final eight points of the first ha...

Petrino: Hogs not looking for motivation in Cotton Bowl
ARLINGTON, Texas — Arkansas won’t be playing for the national title when it lines up to face Kansas State during the 2012 Cotton Bowl in Cowboys Stadium tonight. Those hopes went out the window in late November after the 41-17 loss at LSU, which helped set up next Monday’s rematch between the Tigers and Alabama for the NCAA crown. But Arkansas coach Bobby Petrino insists his team isn’t searching for any motivation when it takes the field tonig...

New league, familiar foeA new era in Arkansas Tech University basketball will begin today when ATU will host the University of Arkansas at Monticello for the first Great American Conference basketball games in either institution’s history. Tip-off for the women’s game is set for 5:30 p.m., while the men’s contest will begin at 7:30 p.m. Both games will be played at Tucker Coliseum in Russellville. Tickets will be available at the door. Those with a valid Arkansas Tec...

No contest in Orange BowlMIAMI (AP) — The West Virginia Mountaineers were tough to slow down, and only the Orange Bowl mascot could stop Darwin Cook. Geno Smith tied the record for any bowl game with six touchdown passes, and the No. 23-ranked Mountaineers set a bowl scoring record Wednesday night with their high-powered offense. But safety Cook made the pivotal play by returning a fumble 99 yards for a touchdown to break the game open and help beat No. 14 Clemson 70-...

Arkansas' defense is growing up fastARLINGTON, Texas — Arkansas linebacker Jerry Franklin will never forget the early days, when he, Jake Bequette and Jerico Nelson were starting as freshmen for the Razorbacks. It was a dream come true. A goal fulfilled in his first season of college football. But he said the enjoyment of being part of the starting lineup faded when reality set in. “It wasn’t fun,” Franklin said. “It wasn’t fun at all. You take a lot of beatings.” Four years lat...